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Monday, April 5, 2010

Kyle Kajihiro: We stand in solidarity with the JUCON rally Tuesday at the Diet Building

We express our solidarity with JUCON members who are rallying Tuesday afternoon at the Diet building against the proposed military base at White Beach, Okinawa and echo this statement by Kyle Kajihiro--shared at last weekend's Spring Love festival focusing on military bases and militaristic versus sustainable economies and cultures:

Aloha ‘Ohana (family)

太平洋の家族のみなさん

Warm greetings from Hawai’i as you celebrate the coming of spring, new life and the creation of a more just and peaceful world.

皆さんが春と新たな命の訪れ、そして今よりもっと公正で平和な世界の創造を祝う このとき、ハワイにて心からのご挨拶を述べます。

My name is Kyle Kajihiro. I am a yonsei Japanese in Hawai’I and Program Director for the American Friends Service Committee Hawaii office. I am sorry that I cannot be there in person, but I join your celebration in the spirit of creativity and peace.

In Hawai’i, we struggle to overcome the legacy of war and imperialism. The independent Kingdom of Hawai’i was invaded and occupied by the U.S. military to advance its building of empire in the Pacific. During the Spanish American War, our islands were transformed into America’s Pacific garrison, a stepping stone to Asia.

The abundant fishponds of Ke Awalau o Pu’uloa – the true name of what many only know as Pearl Harbor and a precious resource that once fed much of O’ahu island – were destroyed and polluted to build one of America’s first overseas military bases. Today, nearly 1000 U.S. foreign military bases encircle the planet in a delusional bid to attain “full spectrum dominance” over the earth.

Small islands have long been pawns of imperialist nations in their struggle for power and dominance. During WWII, Hawai’i, Guam, the Northern Marianas, the Marshall Islands and Okinawa were caught in the cross fire between warring imperialist nations. But it seems that the American victors in that war learned the wrong lessons – that endless militarization and war brings peace and security. On the other hand, Japan has taken the opposite lesson – that wars end as tragedy.

Ironically, Japan can now help America redeem itself. Defend Article 9 in Japan’s constitution. Reject the U.S. bases in Okinawa, and demand the reduction, not relocation of these bases and troops. Standing up to U.S. may begin a momentous process to roll back of the violent legacy of imperialism in the Pacific.

Just as the tragedy of Hiroshima and Nagasaki have been transformed into beacons of peace and hope for the world, let us honor those who perished in war in Okinawa by creating an island of peace rather than a platform for more war.

We in Hawai’i envision the transformation of Pearl Harbor back into Ke Awalau o Pu’uloa, both physically and in our collective memory, from a war memorial to a life-giving monument to peace.

As you raise your voices to remove the bases from Okinawa, we protest the military’s war training in Makua, Waimanalo and Pohakuloa and call for these lands to become centers for cultural education, environmental restoration and the study of peace.

We stand with our brothers and sisters in Guahan and the Marianas to resist the tsunami of militarization that the U.S. proposes to unleash on their islands.

The Pacific Ocean unites us as a family. The currents that once carried people across the sea in epic voyages can also carry our prayers and solidarity. We, the peoples of the Pacific must model for the governments new ways to bring about peace, justice and security through peoples’ solidarity rather than militarism.